Artiest op rolschaatsen 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels’ sketch of roller skaters feels like a fleeting moment frozen in time. The pencil moves quickly, almost as if it were chasing the skaters around the rink. I can feel the pressure of the graphite as it hits the paper, scratching out a record of the artist’s encounter. Look at the way the skaters’ bodies lean into their motion, captured in a tangle of lines. It's like he is not just drawing figures, but the sensation of movement itself. Israels is not just depicting a scene, but also embodying the very act of skating. The sketch reminds me of Degas’s dancers, the way he tried to capture the body in motion. But while Degas is interested in the precision and discipline of ballet, Israels seems more drawn to the casual energy of the skating rink. I am fascinated by the ways artists across time have been in conversation with one another, each inspiring new ways of seeing and experiencing the world.